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Learning about mathematics teaching and learning from studying rituals and ritualization? A commentary

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Abstract

This is a commentary on the special issue articles on rituals and exploration in mathematics teaching and learning. It explores the question of whether and how we can learn from research on rituals and ritualization, when these are typically associated with poor or even no learning of mathematics. The papers in the special issue show there is indeed much to learn, and the commentary reflects on this learning together with the quandaries that arise from such engagement, in particular the quandaries of understanding and deficit discourses.

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This work is based on research supported by the South African Research Chairs Initiative of the Department of Science and Technology and National Research Foundation (Grant No. 71218).

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Correspondence to Jill Adler.

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Adler, J. Learning about mathematics teaching and learning from studying rituals and ritualization? A commentary. Educ Stud Math 101, 291–299 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-018-9876-6

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